Two methods, two roads.
It was only a tiny Zhou Quan.
Zhang Fusheng looked at his plump, round-faced master, whose face brimmed with compassion like a Buddha's, and could never have imagined hearing such words from his mouth.
"Tens of thousands of people, slaughtered to the last. Old and young, women and children alike—none spared. Anyone connected to them by kinship, implicated alongside them."
Chaimen had over ten thousand members. And that was without counting all those tied to them by blood or association.
Gulp.
Zhang Fusheng swallowed, then looked at his master again. All he could still see on that face was compassion.
After a long while.
Hong Tianbao said gently:
"These two methods each have their merits and drawbacks. You should have weighed and chosen between them yourself, but since this is your first lesson after entering the school, let your master choose for you. Is that acceptable?"
Zhang Fusheng came back to himself. His lips trembled, and realization suddenly dawned on him.
White Bone Meditation had also existed in the Buddhist sects of his past life. It used the image of white bones to shatter self-attachment. It seemed evil, yet not entirely so.
But what he was learning here was the Dense White Bone Contemplation. It resembled the Buddhist White Bone Meditation, yet was only superficially alike; its path ran in the opposite direction.
This was no good method.
How could one who cultivated such a method possibly be a person of great compassion?
"The road you chose for me is?" he asked.
Hong Tianbao spoke calmly:
"Fight without Breaking."
Zhang Fusheng unconsciously let out a breath.
"Then, Kill without Leaving," the old man continued.
His eyes lowered, and he looked compassion itself.
"Hong's is not merely Hong's of District Three. We also have our fingers in the Lower-Level District."
Zhang Fusheng's lips trembled as he listened intently.
Hong Tianbao said mildly:
"Once you enter my school, your master will naturally provide you with resources. But they will not be given for free. Our Hong Ji Martial Arts Hall has more than two hundred students, with tuition for each term amounting to more than twenty million."
"Your three senior disciples all teach on my behalf, and each receives ten percent of the profits. After you enter the school, you should do the same."
"So every three-month term, you can receive two million."
Zhang Fusheng listened quietly, then could not help asking:
"More than two hundred students? But normally, when I look inside the martial arts academy..."
Hong Tianbao waved a hand.
"About thirty come to class every day. Another sixty or seventy show up occasionally. The remaining hundred or so are wealthy merchants and ordinary dignitaries from the Mid-Level District and Upper-Level District."
"They pay their tuition and hang their names in the martial arts academy. Should they come into conflict with someone, they can proclaim themselves students of Hong Tianbao."
Zhang Fusheng understood.
The old School Master gazed at him.
"An income of over two million each term amounts to seven or eight hundred thousand per month. That is not little, but if you rely on it for cultivation? It is not enough. Far from enough."
"Poor scholars, wealthy warriors!"
Hearing his master's words, Zhang Fusheng nodded.
"So Hong Ji Martial Arts Hall also has businesses in the Lower-Level District?"
"Mm."
Hong Tianbao smiled.
"A few lines of business. Your three senior disciples each manage one, receiving seventy percent of the income and handing over thirty percent."
"As for the amount, it is not too much. When times are bad, it is probably only thirty to fifty million a month. Your Eldest Senior Brother and Second Senior Sister can only barely sustain their cultivation with that."
Zhang Fusheng was dumbfounded.
Thirty to fifty million every month?
And that was when times were bad??
And it could only barely support cultivation???
He could not help asking:
"Thirty to fifty million—each person gets over ten million. And that is only barely enough?"
Hong Tianbao gave him a strange look.
"It is thirty to fifty million for each person. The business your Third Senior Sister, Lin Dongxi, manages is smaller, so she earns less. But she has only been in the school for half a year and is currently only at the Second Refinement. Naturally, it is enough for her."
Zhang Fusheng swallowed.
"Then... Eldest Senior Brother and Second Senior Sister?"
"Your Eldest Senior Brother, Niu Dali, is at Twelfth Refinement Perfection. Once he completes his visualization method, he can become a Martial Arts Master. Your Second Senior Sister, Chen Yuque, has only just entered the Twelve Refinements."
Twelve Refinements!
They were both at the Twelve Refinements!
Yet Zhang Fusheng still found it hard to imagine.
"Do martial artists at the Twelve Refinements really consume resources so extravagantly?"
Hong Tianbao shook his head.
"Normally, that would naturally not be the case. But this is Jiangzhou City. It is not prosperous. Cultivation resources that one hundred million can buy in a Large City cost several times, even ten times, as much here."
"And some resources found in Mega Core Cities cannot be bought in Jiangzhou City even if you have money."
Zhang Fusheng fell silent.
Even Jiangzhou City was divided into ranks. The Upper-Level District and Lower-Level District were as far apart as heaven and earth. Across the Federation, there were naturally divisions of rank as well.
Small cities, medium cities, Large Cities.
And Mega Core Cities.
Traveling between them required a special "pass."
For people from small cities such as Jiangzhou City,
getting a pass to a Large City was harder than moving from the Lower-Level District to the Upper-Level District.
Zhang Fusheng had never understood why things had to be this way. The Federation was not merely the Federation of Blue Star.
Although there was little news about outer space, one could still infer that the Federation's "territory" stretched as far as the eye could see.
Every star visible when one looked up at night fell under the Federation's jurisdiction.
And Blue Star was the Federation's Mother Star.
Under such circumstances, why did they still divide society into such layers, restricting the areas in which people of every class could move?
He had rarely thought about it before, but now that he considered it carefully, a chill ran through him. The Central Federation, whose territory extended as far as the eye could see,
why was it unable to eradicate even the cultists on its Mother Star?
He did not understand.
As his thoughts twisted and turned, he heard his master speak softly:
"What your three senior disciples have, you should have a share of as well."
"Chaimen is a fine choice. Though after clearing it out, Chaimen's territory and 'business scope' will shrink many times over, it will still be enough to support your cultivation."
Zhang Fusheng came back to himself.
"So what you chose for me is Kill without Leaving."
"Precisely."
Hong Tianbao nodded slightly.
"Your master already had conflicts with that old bastard from Chaimen. Now is a good time to settle them all at once. Of course, the process will not be short, but you do not need that many resources for now."
He pondered for a moment.
"Your Eldest Senior Brother is at a critical stage and cannot share resources with you. As for your Third Senior Sister, the business she currently manages is not large, and she does not earn much herself."
"In that case."
Hong Tianbao made the decision.
"Before we swallow Chaimen, first do some work under your Second Senior Sister. Her share of the income will remain unchanged. Of the thirty percent handed over, your master will allocate ten percent to you. What do you say?"
Zhang Fusheng nodded fiercely.
Seventy percent of Second Senior Sister's business income amounted to tens of millions every month. Even if he only took ten percent, that would still be several million!
It was a figure he had never dared dream of.
Star Beast Meat seemed as if it could directly become "free."
"Master, what is Second Senior Sister's business?" Zhang Fusheng asked cautiously.
"Lending." Chen Yuque pushed the door open and entered with a smile. "Little Junior Sister has gone to sleep. I was just worrying about how many debts need collecting lately. With you here to help me, Junior Disciple Brother, I will have it much easier."
Huh?
Lending?
Zhang Fusheng blinked. In a place like the Lower-Level District, what kind of loans could bring in several tens of millions every month even during bad times?
Now he understood. Although Hong Ji Martial Arts Hall was located in the Upper-Level District, it was probably an underground behemoth in the Lower-Level District.
How high did the interest have to be?
"That is enough." Hong Tianbao nodded faintly. "Your master will rest first. Tomorrow morning, after performing the tea ceremony and learning your cultivation method, we can discuss the rest. As for Chaimen, your master must also consider it carefully."
"Oh?"
Chen Yuque asked curiously:
"Are we making a move on Chaimen?"
She had only just arrived and did not know about the earlier conversation.
"Your Junior Disciple Brother lacks a source of resources." Hong Tianbao smiled as he headed out. Before leaving, he said, "Give your junior brother two or three small jobs first, so he can familiarize himself with things."
"Yes, Master."
After watching the old man leave, Chen Yuque plopped down across from Zhang Fusheng and yawned.
"Mm, I am not as long-winded as Master. Here is what we will do: I will send you a list of people whose debts need collecting lately. Pick one yourself first. What is your Fly Message number?"
Zhang Fusheng hurriedly added his Second Senior Sister as a friend. Before long, a document was sent over.
"I am off to rest too, Little Pervert. See you tomorrow."
Chen Yuque flicked her red hair and strode off carelessly, leaving Zhang Fusheng alone in the quiet room.
He let out a breath, still feeling as though it were all a dream.
Hong's influence in the Lower-Level District was at least on par with Chaimen's.
Chaimen was one of the "five giants" of the Lower-Level District. What about Hong's?
Which one of them was it?
He could not help smiling bitterly. How was he supposed to explain this to his father and mother?
He had gone to learn martial arts, only to become an underground boss?
What a headache.
Shaking his head, Zhang Fusheng opened the document on his phone. A long list of names came into view.
He gave it a rough scan, and the "amount owed" after each name made his heart pound.
Hm?
Zhang Fusheng's expression hardened. He rubbed his eyes, then looked again.
He had not seen wrong.
He stared at two familiar names.
One was Zhu Dashan. Zhu Xiaoming's father.
The other name was "Chen Nuanyu."
"Oh!"
Before you continue